Police receive more than 220 complaints a week for being rude, figures show.

Complaints about the police went up by 8% last year to 33,854, with one in five allegations concerning officers being deliberately rude or intolerant, the police watchdog said.

There were a total of 11,576 allegations of incivility, including rudeness, against the police. A further one in four allegations against police in England and Wales were about officers being slow or ineffective.

Len Jackson, interim chairman of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), said: "The number of 'rude and late' complaints highlights the standards expected of the police service and the need to improve how they interact with the public.

"While some aspects can be improved without cost, such as through better leadership, smaller police budgets will present a challenge around levels of service and public expectation. This will require forces to develop an open dialogue with the public."

One in 10 allegations against police were substantiated, the same proportion as in previous years, the figures showed.

In all the 33,854 complaints made in 2009/10 contained 58,399 allegations of misconduct, the IPCC said.

The watchdog also outlined changes being made to the way complaints statistics are compiled in an attempt to create a simpler system that is "more in line with the public's expectations".

Deputy Chief Constable John Feavyour, the Association of Chief Police Officers lead for complaints and misconduct, said: "The job of a police officer is unique in society, with officers routinely placing themselves in dangerous and stressful situations to keep the public safe.

"The public rightly expects high standards from the police service and police officers and the challenge for us as a service and as officers is to maintain high levels of professionalism during a period when we are being asked to do much more with fewer resources available."